


hidden in shadows

by Princess_LoliKat



Category: VIXX
Genre: Abuse, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Blood and Injury, Canon Compliant, Drugs, Han Sanghyuk | Hyuk-centric, Hostage Situations, Implied/Referenced Torture, LOTS of violence, Multi, Not for the faint of heart, but tbh i'm kind of proud of myself, gotta love the dark stories am i right, i feel so bad writing this, i love vixx and wish nothing bad to ever happen to them, i'm going to hell lol, my mind is just messed up and this is what happens at three in the morning whoops, read on at your own risk, the sanghyuk/everyone tags are more platonic but could be considered romantic so i dunno lol
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-29
Updated: 2018-08-01
Packaged: 2019-06-18 09:35:12
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 4
Words: 12,393
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15482847
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Princess_LoliKat/pseuds/Princess_LoliKat
Summary: It's in the darkness that monsters lie in waiting, patiently watching from afar before striking just as the prime opportunity to do so presents itself. With his hyungs missing, stolen from him just like that, Sanghyuk has no choice but to adhere to the monsters wishes and present them with the money they so demand. Though there must be something he can do to save those who he loves most in this world. There must be a way to fix what has been broken...





	1. stolen

**Author's Note:**

> So I was reading this one Infinite fanfic titled "Quarantine" by shinjiteii and just wow, I really love the plot and concept behind it and decided to kind of replicate that? Well, my version of their fanfic is rather different, but I got my inspiration from the "Quarantine" story so it's not like I couldn't just not put it here (it's so good and highly recommend you check it out in your free time if you're into Infinite ;-;).
> 
> Anyways! This story is truly not for the faint of heart. There will be mentions and most definitely graphic depictions of violence, torture, both mental and physical abuse, mentions of rape and drugs and just everything that could go wrong with a hostage situation. If you're not going to get triggered by reading very sensitive, dark material then be my guest to read on.~ My brain is truly a messed up one so really, this was to be expected.

          There’s a distinct feeling of eyes watching every single one of his movements as he walks down the dark, dimly lit midnight streets of Seoul. It’s unnerving. He picks up his pace just as he begins to hear the sound of footsteps lining up with his own ringing out from a little ways behind himself.

          He stops. Sanghyuk glances over his shoulder only to find no one there. Trying to brush off the uneasiness settling over himself, he continues walking down the street- and then the footsteps sound once more, this time much closer than before.

          This isn’t the first time this has happened. For the last month now, whenever he goes out at night, he swears someone is watching him. Though this is more than the familiar feeling of being watched from afar. Someone is _following him_ and closely at that, though they’re sticking to the shadows. There’s not a person in sight, and yet, he’s sure that this isn’t simply him losing his mind.

          Out there in the darkness, there is a person who is surely following him and Sanghyuk doesn’t doubt that fact.

          Walking a little further, he stops once more, this time turning around quickly. Still not a person in sight… “Okay, whoever is out there what the actual hell do you want from me?” Sanghyuk asks, not another soul around at this time of night and this only makes the hairs on the back of his neck stand up.

          Sure, he’s a pretty big guy, but this is downright creepy. He isn’t sure who’s there, what could be out there watching and preying on him or for what reason he’s being followed. It could very well just be some sasaeng stalking him, waiting for the prime moment to strike. Or it could be something worse, much worse… His gut is telling him it’s most probably the latter of the two, though he still hopes for it to be the former.

          Not wanting to entertain these thoughts for any longer, Sanghyuk hurries down the street. His fast walking pace soon turns into a steady jog and, before he knows it, he’s sprinting for VIXX’s apartment. The sound of footsteps chasing after him only seem to grow louder the faster he runs. 

          Just what in the world is happening right now? Is he going to be attacked? Is this the night Sanghyuk finally gets beat up all because he’s a member of VIXX? Will he even make it back to the apartment tonight..?

          Struggling to pull the key card out of his pocket, he fumbles around with the card while sprinting for the very front of the apartment complex. The footsteps are growing nearer, no more than ten feet away now. Sanghyuk very nearly crashes into the thick glass of the front doors and hurries to scan his little key card, saying that he does indeed live here and isn’t someone attempting to break in.

          In all the months that VIXX has been living here, Sanghyuk has never been more happy to hear the little click of the lock coming undone or to see the red light shine a bright, vibrant green as the doors open.

          Stumbling over his own two feet, he barrels into the apartment complex and skids across the tiled floor from the force of the fall. Thankfully the weighted down doors close swiftly behind him just as a person in all black touches the door handles. Sanghyuk stares at them wide eyed with his chest rising and falling heavily with every labored breath he takes. The person is wearing black shoes, black skinny jeans, a black hoodie, black gloves, and a black face mask with the hood covering most of their face. Thankfully the person doesn’t appear to have a weapon held within their hands, but who knows what could be in their pockets.

          Sanghyuk slowly stands up, never once taking his eyes off the person for even a moment. He stares at them as they stare right back at him. And then the person is slowly lifting a gloved finger up to their lips in a “ _be quiet_ ” motion before slowly stepping back from the glass doors and disappearing into the dark, dimly lit midnight streets of Seoul.

          Standing dumbly in the main foyer of the apartment complex, Sanghyuk stares at the glass doors and into the darkness, just waiting for something else to jump out at him. But even after a good ten minutes pass him by, nothing ever shows.

          The tall idol pockets his key card and slowly makes his way back to where the elevators are. He continuously glances over his shoulder back at the glass doors, trusting his instincts that if he doesn’t look out into the darkness, he might miss when that person comes back for him.

          Finally in the elevator, Sanghyuk clicks the fifth floor and waits for the doors to close. He nearly screams when he sees the taped note stuck to the inside of the elevator door. With one swift movement, he rips the paper down and crumples it, not able to get the scribbled words out of his head.

          “ _We’re closer than you think._ ”

          A shiver courses through his body and Sanghyuk is truly at a loss of what to do. Why is this person targeting him like this and, and the note said _we’re_ as in there are multiple people in on this. That only makes this far worse than what it was when Sanghyuk thought the only person after him was the person who was chasing him not even fifteen minutes ago. If there are more people involved here, then, this isn’t just some sasaeng trying to torment him. No. This is going further than a simple sasaeng attempting to ruin his image. 

          His life could very well be in danger… 

          Sanghyuk’s fist tightens around the balled up paper. He can’t let the members know about this. They’re all so busy and he’ll just worry them with whatever the hell, _this_ is if he even hints at something being wrong. But, it’s not like he can ignore the fact someone just tried to attack him on the way home. They could come back for him and, say they succeed in taking him away to god knows where, the members would have no idea what happened to him.

          With a ding, the elevator doors open and Sanghyuk hesitantly steps out. The door to their apartment is only a few feet away and yet he is dreading even approaching it. 

          Hakyeon and Taekwoon are going to know something is wrong the second they take one good look at him- hell, any one of them will be able to tell that he’s shaken up about something. They’ve been a band for a little over six years now, it’s nearly impossible to hide anything from one another at this point… 

          Taking in a deep breath and exhaling it shakily, Sanghyuk reluctantly opens the front door to their apartment and walks inside. The first thing he notices is that no one seems to be awake right now, or more realistically, no one else is home right now. Feeling goosebumps rise over his skin, Sanghyuk takes small steps further into the dark apartment. 

          He can’t remember anyone saying that they had schedules tonight. Just to be sure, Sanghyuk makes his way into the kitchen, turning on all the lights he passes as he does so. Right there on the fridge is a large calendar Hakyeon had bought for them at the beginning of the year. Everyone’s individual schedules are written down here and there where they’re needed, today being absolutely clear. Though if no one had schedules today, just where are the other members..?

          Quickly pulling out his phone, Sanghyuk punches in Hakyeon’s number and begins walking around the entire apartment, turning on more lights and making sure there’s nothing strange going on. It takes a few rings before someone picks up on the other end of the call. Sanghyuk lets out a sigh of relief even though normally his oldest hyung would pick up his phone a lot quicker. “Hakyeon-hyung, where are you guys-”

          “Han Sanghyuk, you have one month to get us what we want before we release sensitive information to the public and make it so you’ll never see the other VIXX members again.”

          The man’s voice coming from the phone is not Hakyeon’s. It doesn’t belong to anyone Sanghyuk recognizes and he’s now more than sure something terrible has happened if his hyungs have been taken. Sanghyuk has to place a hand on the wall to support his weight, his legs feeling as thought they could buckle out from under him any moment now. “What have you done with them? What do you even want from me?”

          There’s a pause before the man on the other end of the call is speaking once more. “We want money. The first amount you must bring us is two-million won. The location has been specified in the contents of the manila packet placed on the dining room table. And, as for what has been done with the other members, we’re keeping them hostage. With each payment you bring us, one member will be returned to you. Until we have the full ten-million won we want, we’ll be keeping your members.”

          Sanghyuk can barely believe what he’s hearing. How did this even happen? How did these, these _monsters_ get ahold of his hyungs? When did they break into the apartment? And what is he supposed to do from here on out? He doesn’t just have ten-million won lying around for hostage situations. He needs Hakyeon to tell him what to do and how to handle this situation and to just give him some sort of guidance.

          “By the end of the month, we expect to have the ten-million won. Contact the police or tell anyone of this and you’ll never see the other members again, the information we've gathered on you and the others will promptly be released to the public as well.” The man on the phone says, voice scarily serious and cold and so very disconnected from humanity. “Don’t test us or our patience. The second you’re late for even a single payment or fail to give us the full amount specified, we won’t hesitate to make all six of you disappear. Sleep well Han Sanghyuk and we expect to see you in six days with the first payment of two-million won.” And with that, the line goes silent.

          Letting his hand that’s holding his phone fall from his ear down to rest against his hip, Sanghyuk slouches against the wall for a moment, really questioning if this is reality. If this unimaginable hellish scenario is truly playing out right before his very eyes. 

          “How could this happen to us..?” Sanghyuk murmurs under his breath, slowly trudging his way back into the kitchen and only just now noticing the manila packet placed in the center of the dining table.

          The apartment feels so empty without the other members here. It’s unnerving to not hear Hakyeon calling for someone or to see Jaehwan bouncing around the place in order to tease Hongbin and Wonshik or to simply see Taekwoon slinking his way into the kitchen for yet another mug of coffee. There’s no one here but himself, alone with his thoughts and the terrifying knowledge that his hyungs are nowhere to be found.

          Taking a seat, Sanghyuk opens the manila packet and dumps it’s contents out onto the dining room table. There’s not much inside. A sheet of paper saying the time and location of where to meet in order to drop off the two-million won. A map of the entire city, five distinct areas circled with numbers one through five on them. And then there are pictures.

          He can’t bring himself to look at them right away, keeping them pushed away and refusing to even spare them a glance. Though when he catches a glimpse of Taekwoon’s bloodied and bruised face, Sanghyuk can’t help but look at the photos. He spreads the five photos out to get a clear view of them all, each and every one of them as heartbreaking as the last. 

          Taekwoon, Hakyeon, Wonshik, Hongbin, Jaehwan, their arms tied behind the backs of their chairs while their ankles are tied to the chairs legs, each blindfolded and shirtless with cuts littering their torso’s while they have bruises both on their torso’s and on their face. If Sanghyuk looks closely, he can even see the faint indentations of bite marks littering some of his hyungs skin and he very nearly vomits at the thought of anyone laying a hand on _his_ hyungs let alone doing anything indecent with them. He doesn’t want to entertain those type of thoughts and so, for the sake of his mental stability, Sanghyuk pretends as if he can’t see the pink hickey beginning to bloom over the skin of Hongbin’s neck or the bite marks littering Jaehwan’s body. He can't even bring himself to truly look over the other photos of his hyungs, already feeling sick to his stomach. If he stares at them for any longer he’s surely going to go crazy… 

          With his hands now shaking, Sanghyuk returns everything back into the manila packet. For a while, he just stares down at the table, unsure of what to do from this point forward. 

          Does he get the money those monsters want and hope they give him his hyungs back once he somehow comes up with ten-million won? Does he try and talk to someone without them knowing? Does he visit each of the locations and just try to rescue his hyungs before they realize what’s going on? Does he go to the cops even though they explicitly said not to do just that? 

          Before Sanghyuk knows it, he’s crying right there at the dining room table, face soon being buried into the palms of his hands as he has a complete and utter breakdown. He needs someone to talk to, anyone that can give him some sort of advice on how to proceed or simply listen to what he has to say and to tell him that all of this is just some bad dream; a sick joke even. That none of this could possibly be happening to them. That everything is going to be okay.

          He’s the youngest member of VIXX, the maknae, stage name Hyuk. His members are Leo, Ken, Hongbin, Ravi, and their precious leader, N. They’re well known, loved by their precious Starlights and by a large portion of South Korea as well. There’s no way that _they_ would be targeted by monsters wanting to exploit them for their money. 

          Of course not. 

          The worst thing that can happen to an idol is either getting into an accident, getting caught up in a scandal, or simply losing fame because of something they said or something they did. Running the risk of being taken hostage and abused all in exchange for money while leaving the maknae to somehow acquire said money isn’t something that happens. No. This must truly be some fucked up dream because there’s no possible way Hongbin, Jaehwan, Wonshik, Hakyeon, and Taekwoon have been taken as hostages with Sanghyuk being left behind to somehow save them. That can’t happen… 

          Sanghyuk’s cries only grow in intensity as all of this truly begins to settle in. He’s going to have to go on some wild goose chase to save his hyungs and even _if_ he somehow manages to get the money in time for each payment, there’s no guarantee that his hyungs will be safe. There must be something he can do to save them all before the end of the month even draws near. He can’t risk them getting hurt, more so than they’ve already been- or worse, sold into something horrid because those monsters didn’t hold up their end of the bargain.

          First things first, Sanghyuk needs to get a hold of himself before he can even think of saving his hyungs.

          For the remainder of that night, the young idol gathers some things into a duffle bag and takes a shower, fully ready to leave come morning after grabbing all of their credit cards and bank information. He has around five-million won in savings that he can use to get through the first two payments. But after that, well, Sanghyuk is going to have to hope he has a plan by then if he wants to get everyone back before anything truly horrible can take place.

          Once he has the duffle bag packed, has taken his shower, and grabs some of the canned food Hakyeon likes to keep stocked up in the pantry, Sanghyuk takes one last good look around the apartment and sighs some to himself.

          He can’t stay here.

          With the other VIXX members now missing and he himself being forced to somehow rescue them from this situation, Sanghyuk can’t risk the company or the authorities coming to the apartment to look for the six of them. As long as he can avoid people, then, Sanghyuk should be able to get everyone back from those monsters. Though now there’s just the question of where they’re going to stay until this is all said and done.

          “I’ll figure that out in the morning…” Sanghyuk murmurs to himself. Dressed in one of Taekwoon’s large t-shirts and a pair of Jaehwan’s sweatpants, Sanghyuk wanders down to Hakyeon’s room and decides to sleep in there for his last night in their apartment. 

          Whenever he’s nervous about something or stressed or simply needs to be comforted, Hakyeon was always there to keep him grounded and reassure him that everything would be alright. Now with Hakyeon gone, Sanghyuk can only go to where Hakyeon’s cologne is the strongest and pretend, if only for a little bit, that being wrapped up in Hakyeon’s blanket is the same as having his precious leaders strong arms wrapped around him once more.

          Come morning, everything will change and Sanghyuk can only hope he’s even relatively prepared for what’s next to come…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> jkadkjadkkjladj I can't believe I'm writing something so dark when I want nothing but happiness for the VIXX boys ;-; why am I like this


	2. moving

         The sun has barely risen above the horizon when Sanghyuk is slowly detangling himself from Hakyeon’s blanket and stumbling haphazardly back into the living room. He hadn’t even thought about barricading himself in last night considering whoever these monsters are, they can easily enter the apartment and could have tampered with anything and everything while he was asleep. Thankfully, after double and even triple checking all of the things he gathered last night, nothing seems to be out of place or missing.

         Slowly making a couple more rounds around the apartment, Sanghyuk wanders into bedrooms and questions what's most important to bring along with him and what things are better off being left behind. There’s no telling what state his hyungs will be in once he manages to get them back so he has no idea what he _should_ be bringing along with him. He doesn’t even know where he’ll be staying so how can he possibly pack?

         Well, there’s a good chance that his hyungs will be needing first aid supplies and a good amount of it if those photos from last night are of any indication as to how they will have been treated. Okay so that’s one thing he needs to gather more of. First aid supplies.

         Making his way into the bathroom, Sanghyuk scours the cabinets and drawers and overturns every last thing they've thrown in there until he finds Hakyeon’s absurdly large supply of bandages and gauze and disinfectant and just- _wow_ , Hakyeon was prepared for the apocalypse or something with the amount of supplies he’s hoarded without any of them ever knowing it was even here to begin with. Sanghyuk grabs his backpack from the living room and comes back to the bathroom, stuffing in as much of the first aid supplies as he can fit. 

         The next thing he makes a grab for are water bottles. One can never have enough water and knowing his hyungs, they can drink a lot in just one day so Sanghyuk just knows he needs to bring as much water as he physically can along with him. 

         Damn, he’s going to need to grab that five-million won from the bank a few blocks away before he leaves the apartment for good. There’s no way he can just walk in there with a full backpack as well as a large suitcase and just take out everything in his bank account. That’s exactly how one let’s the entire world know something is very wrong and Sanghyuk needs to not do that. Though maybe no one will think anything of him taking all of his money.

         It is his money after all.

         With that thought in mind, Sanghyuk grabs his face mask and one of Wonshik’s baseball caps before tugging on his jacket and slipping on his shoes. He makes sure to hide the things he’s gathered in Hakyeon’s large closet just in case those monsters decide to snoop around some while he’s out. Sanghyuk can’t risk them stealing the things he’s going to need in order to help his hyungs.

         Once the front door is locked and Sanghyuk makes his way outside the apartment complex, he shoves his hands into his jacket pockets and begins making his way down the street, keeping his head down as he does so. He doesn’t want to be recognized out on the streets right now or ever for that matter. Not until this whole ordeal is over and done with and well behind them… 

         Just like last night, Sanghyuk can  _feel_ eyes watching him closely. Once again he's being followed. Though this time it's from further away and not nearly as noticeable as before. There's far too many people out and about for someone to follow him with ease. But that doesn't mean he's not being watched closely regardless. Just glancing up and taking one good look around, Sanghyuk spots three people in total standing closer to the dark alleyways that kids hear horror stories about when they're younger. The men standing there watch him with emotionless expressions. That's all they do. Watch him from afar and make sure he doesn't go and do something stupid.

         It's terrifying knowing that his every move is being carefully monitored... 

         The bank clerks look at Sanghyuk funny when he withdraws five-million won in hard cash. Though after verifying his identity twice and having him assure that he’s going to be giving the money to his parents as a gift to help them pay for their new home, they approve of the withdrawal and give him his money. Needless to say Sanghyuk nearly has a heart attack when the clerks call him back to the front desk just as he was about to leave only to hand him his ID that he almost left behind in his haste to return to the apartment. To say he’s currently on edge is an understatement. Sanghyuk has never been so easily startled in his life and that’s saying something when way back during their debut days, he had to forever stay on his guard because of his and Hongbin’s never ending prank war that may or may not have gotten a little out of hand at one point or another.

         Sanghyuk smiles bitterly to himself at the memory of those simpler days. Back when they were first trying to make it as idols and were most concerned about who would be ordering takeout that night. Nowadays, their schedules are all so hectic and time consuming and they’re all so tired and in dire need of just a week to themselves to recharge if only for a little while. Too bad on their first collective day off in a while, something so horrible had to go and happen to his hyungs while he was out… 

         Maybe if he hadn’t had gone out to meet Sungjae earlier yesterday afternoon none of this would have happened. Maybe he could have somehow prevented those monsters from ever getting anywhere even remotely close to his hyungs. Maybe if he would have just told the company or the authorities or even Hakyeon about the feeling of being followed for the last month, all of this could have been avoided.

         Shaking his head, Sanghyuk enters the lobby of the apartment complex and makes his way for the elevators, leaving the watchful stares of those men behind. There’s no point in thinking like that right now. He needs to focus on what he can do now to save his hyungs, not what he could have done in the past. Dwelling over that stuff won’t do him any good when the people he cares most about are currently being harmed. 

         The apartment is just as he left it and Sanghyuk can’t help but let out a sigh of relief when he hurries to Hakyeon’s closet and is met with the sight of all the things he packed still in tact. No one came here while he was gone. Good. That means he can continue gathering the things he needs without having to go on some wild goose chase to once again find all the items he’s already piled into his large backpack.

         Grabbing Hongbin’s suitcase from his room, Sanghyuk begins the task of grabbing clothes and blankets and whatever he can manage to forcefully fit into the large piece of luggage. Hongbin’s suitcase is by far the largest one in the entire apartment which is why that one in particular was Sanghyuk’s first choice. And as for why he’s packing clothes and a couple blankets, well, no one wants to continue wearing the same thing they were wearing while being held hostage now do they? He just wants his hyungs to be as comfortable as they can be once they’re safely back with him. If grabbing some of their clothes can help even just a little then he’ll be damned if he doesn’t grab any.

         Hours pass by of Sanghyuk running around the apartment like some madman. He darts in and out of rooms, placing everything he grabs in the living room before wandering back into some other room he's probably walked in and out of at least three times now. By the time he finishes up his packing, Sanghyuk has filled both Hongbin’s suitcase as well as his backpack to the brim with supplies. Hell, if he could lug around a second suitcase to bring even more items then he would. But that would only increase the amount of attention already being drawn to himself and so that’s clearly not an option.

         With a sigh, the young idol plops down on the couch beside his backpack, letting his head fall backwards to rest against the back of the couch. He needs to figure out where he’s going to go and live for the next month. But, where is there for him to go?

         He can’t stay with any of his friends, they’d question too many things- especially when reports start coming out of missing VIXX members and that’s _if_ they don’t get freaked out about seeing his hyungs in such horrible states once he gets them back one at a time. Though he can’t stay on the streets because his hyungs will get sick and they are more than likely in no condition to be fighting any sort of illness right now… 

         So he needs to find a place just big enough for the six of them to live in without drawing any attention to themselves. That’s easier said than done. Sanghyuk could find a small place for them on the outskirts of the city or in the more rundown parts where a good portion of the buildings have been abandoned but still have power. Though those building’s more times than not have homeless people living there or dangerous people using the places as their base of operations and just _no_ , Sanghyuk will not be bringing his hyungs back to that sort of environment.

         Okay, so he can’t stay with any of his friends and he can’t go find some random abandoned building either because the threat level is too high to risk staying there for even just a single night. His parents are obviously not an option because _they’re his parents_ and the cops will without a doubt go to them when he’s reported missing. But, on the note of his parents, there might be a place for Sanghyuk to stay after all.

         Pushing himself up off the couch, he grabs his backpack and flings it onto his shoulders, dragging the heavy suitcase behind him as he slowly begins walking towards the front of the apartment. Though Sanghyuk stops when his eyes land on just one of the many framed photos they have lying around the apartment. This one is special to him.

         It’s a picture they took when the members threw him his first birthday party after debut. Sanghyuk remembers how Hakyeon went all out buying tons of candles and getting a really nice cake and having balloons all over their practice room and, and that was truly a happy time in his life. Taekwoon was just beginning to warm up to him all those years ago. Jaehwan and Hongbin made it their life missions to see which one of them could become his favorite hyung that night. And then there was Wonshik who took him to the side just to tell him how happy he was to have him as their maknae.

         Sanghyuk grabs the picture frame without a second thought and begins unscrewing the back of the frame. He takes off the backing, easily slipping the photo out before placing the now empty frame back onto the dresser. Once he has the photo folded up, Sanghyuk stuffs it into the pocket of his jeans and then goes on his way, leaving the apartment and all the memories it holds behind. Though he’ll be back and when he does return, he won’t be alone.

         The late evening streets of Seoul are bustling with people as Sanghyuk ventures out onto them. He doesn’t bother glancing around to get a better look at his surroundings and instead makes a beeline for where he knows the subway stations to be. And, unsurprisingly, Sanghyuk can once again feel himself being watched. There's a good chance that by taking the subway he can lose them long enough to get to his destination undetected and so the young idol quickens his pace. He needs to lose them. Besides, those monsters who stole his hyungs never said he couldn’t leave the apartment or go somewhere else. As long as he brings them the money they want, then, he should be alright living more or less off the grid for the next month. They couldn’t have really expected him to stay in that apartment anyways. 

         No one pays him much mind as he takes the subway down through to the edges of Seoul. It doesn’t take Sanghyuk long to maneuver the old yet oh so familiar streets he used to run through when he was just a kid. This part of the city though is a lot more quiet than the part he now lives in with the other VIXX members, this area being less populated and more rundown than he’d like to admit. Though the house he stops in front of looks just as it had when him and his family moved out of it all those years ago.

         Just as he remembered, the spare key is still under the doormat and Sanghyuk gets in without any problems. He drags the suitcase in behind him before locking the door once more, not wanting to leave it open for any longer than necessary.

         The house looks just as Sanghyuk and his family left it way back when. The only noticeable difference between then and now is the thick layers of dust caked on top of nearly everything. Honestly, he wouldn’t want to live here again until he can at least clean the place up a little bit, but it’s not like he has much of a choice. In five days now, he’s going to give the first payment of two-million won over to those monsters and will then be bringing one of his hyungs back here to stay until he gets them all back, safe and sound. Maybe he can clean a little before that time comes though just so no one dies of sneezing too much because seriously, the amount of dust in here could kill someone.

         Leaving his suitcase next to the couch and placing his backpack down on the coffee table just in front of said couch, Sanghyuk decides to do a quick sweep of the place to see if there’s signs of anyone else coming here during the years he's been gone.

         His old bedroom looks untouched as does his parents bedroom. The kitchen is a little dirty but nothing too bad. Same as the living room. And, oddly enough, there’s still power as well as running water here in the house. Someone must live upstairs in the house above his or maybe down below, Sanghyuk isn’t sure. Though clearly someone is paying for the building’s power and water bills and he isn’t going to question it if it means warm showers and having the heat turned on every night. 

         Sanghyuk nods to himself because yeah, he’s done good in picking this place to live. Luck seems to be on his side what with the power and water still running. Now it’s just making this place livable for the next month and figuring out how to deal with problems when they happen to arise.

         The sound of his phone suddenly ringing nearly gives Sanghyuk a heart attack as his head whips around back to where he left his backpack sitting on the coffee table. With hesitant steps, he slowly approaches the backpack and fishes his phone out from under some of the packets of bandages, letting out an audible sigh of relief when he sees the caller ID to be Sungjae. Though right as he’s about to answer the call, he stops himself.

         If he was to answer the call, who’s to say he hadn’t told Sungjae about his current situation? Would those monsters think that Sanghyuk spoke to Sungjae and informed him about all of the things that have happened thus far? Would they hurt his hyungs more for talking to someone? He can't risk making things worse for his hyungs... 

         Placing the phone down on the coffee table after turning off his ringer, Sanghyuk spares the phone one last glance before walking back further into his old home, tasking himself with beginning the long mental list of chores he might as well busy himself with until the day comes where he’s to deliver the first payment to those monsters. There’s nothing else for him to do here. Until he gets his hyungs back, Sanghyuk might as well be under house arrest for the next month. Though he’d much prefer actual house arrest when compared to the mess he now finds himself smack dab in the middle of.

         Making his way in and out of rooms in order to see just what he should do with the place over the next month, Sanghyuk begins closing the blinds as to prevent anyone from seeing inside. That small task takes him a good twenty minutes to scour the entirety of his home, not leaving a single window unmasked. Though with the final set of windows in the very front of his old home, Sanghyuk notices something very out of place walking slowly about just outside.

         The person in black who chased him all the way back to the apartment complex just last night holds some sort of tracking device within the palm of their hand, staring down at the piece of technology before glancing up questioningly and looking around. Sanghyuk scurries to close the blinds mere seconds before the person looks in his direction. He waits for a moment before carefully inching one little part of the blinds up just enough to see the person looking at the building across the street.  And with one look back down at the tracker, the person continues walking.

         Sanghyuk let’s the blinds fully close once more before he slowly backs away from the window. How did they follow him all the way here? He was so sure that when he went through the overcrowded subway that he’d lose those monsters for at least for the time being- but clearly he was wrong if that same person from last night is already hot on his trail. But that just leaves the question on how in the world is he being tracked in the first place.

         The young idol thinks for a couple seconds as he makes his way back into the living room, all the blinds in the house now closed. There has to be something on him that is giving his location away, right? And yet all he brought with him are things he needs to help take care of both himself and later his hyungs. There’s nothing here that could be tracked and- _wait_.

         Flicking his gaze to the coffee table, Sanghyuk’s eyes land on his phone. Of course, _of course_ it’s his phone! They would be able to track that with little to no problems what with the weird location chip that’s in it and all. How else is google supposed to know a devices location when using google maps?

         He needs to get rid of his phone.

         Knowing the longer he takes, the more danger he’s putting himself in, Sanghyuk hurries to unlock his phone and factory resets the device. He’s seen this done in a couple movies where this one guy will wipe his phone clean so that if it’s recovered by some bad guy, they won’t be able to see who owned it previously. And then they leave the phone somewhere far away from where they’re currently staying since the phones location can still be tracked even when it’s turned off. 

         Taking this into consideration, Sanghyuk puts his face mask back on fully and hurries to the back of his old home with his phone in hand. He lifts up the blinds just ever so slightly to make sure the coast is clear before opening the window and slipping right on through. There must be somewhere he can run off to and hide the phone so that the location won’t be tracked back to himself. 

         Sanghyuk darts into the nearby alleyways and sticks to the shadows as he begins maneuvering through the surprisingly still familiar paths. He remembers playing here when he was younger and that there are some areas that were pretty hidden when compared to the more open streets only a little ways away. One of his favorite hiding spots when playing hide and seek was this one abandoned house a good eleven streets away from his home. No one would usually check there and so he won very nearly every time they played. The other kids had said that the abandoned building was too scary to go inside and Sanghyuk agreed to an extent. But nothing bad ever happened there from what he could tell and so he kept hiding there much to the other kids displeasure.

         The house still appears to be abandoned when he arrives and Sanghyuk strides up the small path of sidewalk in order to get a good knock on the door. Thankfully it seems just as empty as it was back then and so Sanghyuk doesn’t hesitate for even a moment as he launches his phone into the house courtesy of a broken window with just enough shattered glass for Sanghyuk to throw his phone through. He doesn’t stay any longer than necessary after that. Once his phone is inside the abandoned house and most probably a little bit broke from the force of his throw, Sanghyuk turns right back around and retraces his steps all the way back to his old home. 

         The person in black passes by him at one point while he was walking back, but they were too preoccupied trying to navigate the tracker to notice Sanghyuk who was standing still in the shadows no more than twenty feet away. He’ll have to confront these people eventually. If those monsters are going to try and keep tabs on him, then, Sanghyuk is most probably going to have to continuously move locations. 

         He doesn’t know what they’ll do when they find him and it wouldn’t be smart to not try and stay a step ahead of them. Maybe, just maybe if he plays his cards right, he can beat them at their own twisted game. 

         Slipping into his old home back through the window he purposefully left open for himself, Sanghyuk lets out a sigh of relief. At least he won’t be getting caught tonight…

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I needed a chill chapter before the next emotional af one so here ya go~ The next chapter should be coming out in a day or two and feel free to leave a comment with some feedback! I'm still a little nervous about this fanfic and any and all feedback/ constructive criticisms I can get is greatly appreciated :') <3


	3. valor

        For the next few days and nights, Sanghyuk doesn’t dare step foot outside his home. The person in black has been moving about around here, searching for him, and he doesn’t want to risk being found. Though they seem almost lost, not sure where to look and they’re often talking on their phone, only growing more and more confused and frustrated with every minute that passes by. 

        Soon enough, the day of the first payment arrives. After being stuck in this house for four days straight now, Sanghyuk isn’t so sure about this entire situation. He’s meeting these monsters at a time and place _they_ set up. Sanghyuk could very well be walking into a trap if he isn’t careful. But it’s not like there’s exactly a careful way to go about this type of situation. Unless he turns the tables on them somehow, he’ll forever be playing their game.

        Sanghyuk unpacks a good number of the things he had stuffed into his backpack only to replace them with the two-million won he needs to hand over as well as a change of clothes. He isn’t sure what is going to be needed really, but he’s hopeful that a change of clothes for whoever he finds will be enough until they can make it back to the comforts of Sanghyuk’s old home. Now it’s just the question of how in the world are they not going to be followed back here.

        Currently, Sanghyuk knows that those monsters aren’t sure on exactly where he’s staying. They can’t locate him. Those angry phone calls the person in black keeps having is evidence enough of that. Though if he goes to the specified meeting location, then he’ll be back on their radars.

        Sighing to himself, Sanghyuk flings his backpack on and leaves his old home behind for the time being after hiding all of his belongings. As he navigates through the late night streets of Seoul, he keeps an eye out for any potential places he could try and use as another hideout for him and his hyungs. They’re going to need to move time and time again to stay at least relatively safe… 

        The area of Seoul the first meeting location is in is a manufacturing district of sorts. Most of the building’s here are factories, their lights switched off with everything eerily silent. Sanghyuk tries to stay vigilant, not wanting to miss even the slightest movement within the shadows. Someone could be hiding there, waiting for a chance to attack him. Clearly those monsters don’t play fair and so he needs to stay on his toes. Sanghyuk would much rather be overly cautious than not care enough and find himself in a worse situation than the one he’s already in.

        A pebble skitting across the ground behind him has Sanghyuk stopping dead in his tracks. He waits for a moment, listens to try and catch the sound of someone moving behind him. Though all is silent and so, with adrenaline beginning to course through his veins, Sanghyuk continues walking towards the large factory that conveniently has it’s front warehouse extensions gate like door left open, just for him.

        Inside the warehouse part of the factory’s building, there’s no one around. Sanghyuk looks to his left, then to his right, and finally looks behind him once more only to see that he truly is alone, or at the very least _appears_ to be alone. 

        He walks slowly further into the warehouse, his steps careful as he once again glances around at his surroundings. “I’ve brought the money you want.” Sanghyuk says loudly to no one in particular. “I’m going to take it out of my backpack now.”

        Doing just as he said, the young idol slowly slides his backpack off of one shoulder and unzips it. He pulls out the neatly tied together wads of cash and waits for someone to come. It would be stupid for no one to come out here and count the money no wouldn’t it? But, then again, if they’re keeping tabs on him, they could easily count the money later and if they found that he didn’t give them the full amount, then they could just come after him later on. There’s no rush when they’re the ones winning the game.

        Footsteps ringing out behind him catch Sanghyuk’s attention instantly. He turns around and is met with the sight of five large men walking into the large warehouse, each of them wearing the same all black outfits as the person tracking him. Sanghyuk pushes down all of his fears in order to put on a brave facade. This is no time to show any sort of weaknesses. Not when his hyungs wellbeing are on the line.

        He needs to be the strong one this time around, for their sakes.

        “So, you’ve brought the money huh?” One of the men speaks up, voice deep and gruff but not the one Sanghyuk heard on the phone. 

        “I did.” The young idol responds, holding out the two-million won for someone to take.

        Snatching it from him, a different man begins counting the money, bill by bill, making sure there is exactly two-million won right there within the palms of his hands. Sanghyuk waits silently as the man does this, staring at the man closest to him with his gaze never wavering. 

        No fear.

        He can’t show fear.

        A few minutes pass by before the man counting the money nods curtly to a different man standing off more to the side, not particularly interested in what’s going on. Walking up to him, the third man hands Sanghyuk another manila packet without uttering a single word. The five men stare at the young idol for a moment before the man closest to him scoffs. “Keep up just like this and we won’t have any problems. See you again in six days.”

        And with that, the five men turn to walk back out of the warehouse. Sanghyuk stares at them for a moment before realizing they haven’t held up their end of the bargain. “Wait! You guys said if I bring you the money, you’ll give me one of my hyungs back. Where the hell is he?!”

        The men stop, the one in the middle looking over his shoulder to the young man they’re putting through such a hellish ordeal without an ounce of remorse. “He’s here somewhere. You better find him quickly, he didn’t look too good where we left him lying on the floor in a puddle of his own blood.”

        Sanghyuk stares at the men blankly, the five of them leaving the warehouse behind without sparing him another glance. There’s no way they would have hurt one of his hyungs that badly, right? He gave them the money, he gave them the fucking money they wanted. Why the hell would they injure his hyungs when he’s complying? What more do they want from him?!

        Turning on his heels and taking off further into the warehouse, Sanghyuk sprints as if his life depends on it. He needs to find whoever it is they brought here. It could be Hakyeon or Taekwoon or Jaehwan or Hongbin or Wonshik and- and he _needs_ to find them. 

        Swinging door after door open, Sanghyuk calls out each of the members names as he scours the entire warehouse area and then begins working his way through the large factory. Time feels as though it’s standing still the longer he runs about, searching desperately for any signs of life. He can’t hear anyone. Not a soul responding to his calls.

        What if no one is here..?

        Doubt begins to cloud Sanghyuk’s thoughts. Those monsters could have very well just told him they brought someone here when, in reality, they didn’t. Sanghyuk has no way of knowing if they’re telling the truth and all he can do is put his blind faith in what little bit of humanity they have left and pray to everything holy in this world that they haven't screwed him over.

        Sanghyuk shakes his head.  No. He can’t start thinking like that right now. If there’s even a _chance_ of one of his hyungs being here, then he needs to find them. He can’t give up until he’s searched this entire factory.

        Still calling out for the members, Sanghyuk slows his pace to better look into each room and really search the place, not leaving any corner uncovered. It must be a couple hours into his search when Sanghyuk get’s to the third floor of the factory and stumbles across a room with it’s door jammed from the outside. A chair is hiked up and placed just under the door knob, preventing it from being opened.

        Sanghyuk stops for a moment and wonders if maybe this could be a trap. But he quickly dispels that thought and hurries to the door, removing the chair from under the door handle with a single swift movement. He takes one deep breath in before exhaling it shakily, and then he’s opening the door to the small room where he finds one of the five men he’s been searching for for hours now.

        Hongbin lies there on the floor, blindfolded with a gag in his mouth, dried blood trailing down his nose only to lead to where there’s a puddle of the sticky red substance pooled beside him. Just like in the first set of pictures Sanghyuk was given, the older is shirtless but with even more bruises now littering his once smooth and unmarred skin. There are more hickeys as well and Sanghyuk’s blood runs cold. 

        They wouldn’t have raped him… Right? Those monsters wouldn’t go that far would they? There’s no way they would do something so horrible to any of his hyungs. No. _No_ , they couldn’t have.

        After managing to get passed the initial shock of seeing his hyung lying there motionless on the ground, Sanghyuk takes off his backpack and places that down onto the floor by his feet. “Hongbin, hey, it’s me.” The younger says as he slowly begins walking towards the man lying on the floor. “C’mon hyung, I’m here to bring you back home.” He says, voice wavering and beginning to crack just ever so slightly.

        Sanghyuk kneels down right in front of Hongbin, reaching out and carefully untying first the gag that’s been placed in his hyungs mouth and then going to make quick work of the damp blindfold covering the olders eyes, probably wet with his tears… For a moment, Hongbin doesn’t do anything and Sanghyuk wonders if he’s unconscious. If it wasn’t for his chest rising and falling, Sanghyuk would have thought Hongbin was dead.

        And then the older is slowly opening his eyes, thick eyelashes fluttering as he squints up at the younger, a tired and pained smile spreading across his lips. “Hyukie..?”

        “It’s me hyung. You’re safe now.” Sanghyuk murmurs, slowly standing back up and moving to the other side of the older man so he can begin untying the ropes that have bounded his wrists together. “We’re going home.”

        Hongbin is silent for a few seconds before he hums in acknowledgment. At least he’s still coherent enough to understand what Sanghyuk is saying. “Where are the others?” 

        Sanghyuk’s hands still at the question. “I haven’t gotten them back yet hyung.” He murmurs under his breath, tossing the bloodied rope to the side before helping Hongbin to sit up. “You’re the first I’ve managed to find.”

        The older slouches some as he just sits there, staring down at his hands that he placed on his legs. He traces the lacerations winding their way around his wrists courtesy of the rope chafing and digging into his skin until he bled. “Are they here..?” Hongbin asks at nothing above a whisper.

        “No hyung. They’re still being kept hostage.” Sanghyuk says with a dejected laugh, his eyes beginning to sting a bit, a telltale sign that he’s going to breakdown any second now. “I’m sorry Hongbin, I’m so sorry this had to happen to you and the other hyungs.” The younger sniffles as his cheeks become wet with his tears. “I, I don’t know how to make this up to you.”

        Hongbin slowly lifts his head and looks to Sanghyuk, his smile small but there nonetheless. He reaches over and cups the side of Sanghyuk’s face with the palm of his hand, wiping away a stray tear with the pad of his thumb. “You didn’t cause this. This isn’t your fault. I’m just glad you weren’t hurt. Right, they haven’t hurt you have they?”

        Sanghyuk shakes his head some, more tears falling because how could Hongbin care about his well being when he’s been through so much already? How can he care about Sanghyuk when he himself has bruises and cuts and so much more littering his body? How can he care when he’s the one truly hurt?

        “I-I’m fine, hyung. We should get you home now.” Sanghyuk says, wiping stubbornly at his eyes before making a move to stand up. Though right as he’s about to get up, Hongbin grabs his wrist with a weak grip, preventing him from moving.

        “Hyuk, it’s going to be okay." Hongbin says, looking a little less out of it now. "We’ll get through this together alright? You’re not alone anymore. I’m not really sure what’s going on, but, I’m here for you.”

        Returning the olders smile, Sanghyuk nods. “Thanks hyung. Now c’mon, I brought you a change of clothes.”

        Twenty minutes pass by of the two of them just talking with one another while Hongbin changes, neither wanting to go into too much detail as to what’s been happening over the last six days and instead focus on the more mundane of topics. Sanghyuk telling Hongbin about how he’s been cleaning his family’s old home since he left the apartment while Hongbin talks a little about how his drama filming has been going recently. Though Sanghyuk can’t help but wonder if any of them will be able to continue being idols after this mess is all said and done.

        Once Hongbin is changed and has wiped off the majority of the dried blood off of his face with the still damp blindfold, Sanghyuk helps him to stand. The older's legs are weak and have a tough time holding up his weight, so much so that he very nearly collapses right back down onto the ground. If it wasn't for Sanghyuk wrapping a protective arm around Hongbin’s waist to support him then he probably would have fallen. 

        “Heh, guess those bastards really did a number on me.” Hongbin scoffs as the two of them slowly make their way out of the small room and down the hallway.

        Sanghyuk keeps his pace slow, being mindful of Hongbin's injuries and not wanting to rush him. “Have you eaten anything hyung? Had anything to drink?”

        “Not in a while. Do you have food at your parents old place?”

        “Yeah, I grabbed a shit ton of the canned foods and water bottles Hakyeon always hoarded in the pantry. 

        Hongbin chuckles at that, the somber mood lightening some. “Guess Hakyeon’s weird doomsday preparations finally came in handy.”

        “Yeah, did you know he had our bathroom stocked to the brim with first aid kits and whatnot?” Sanghyuk asks, a grin tugging at the corners of his lips. “It was behind all of your face and hair products under the sink.”

        “Geez, no wonder we had on room to place things down there.” Hongbin muses.

        Sanghyuk can only laugh as the two of them slowly walk out of the warehouse and begin walking down the dark streets just outside. It’s nice finally being able to talk with someone after having no contact with anyone for nearly a week now. Even if the circumstances aren’t exactly the most ideal, Sanghyuk can’t deny that he isn’t absolutely overjoyed at having Hongbin back.

        One of his five hyungs are now back, safe and sound and no longer held hostage. Yeah, Sanghyuk can allow himself to be happy for at least tonight…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> YA BOI FOUND BEAN YAAASSSSS sorry i'm happy for my own story don't mind me
> 
> Okay but oof this chapter hurt my soul a little bit tbh but i'm happy with the direction the story is going.~ Too bad things are only going to start getting worse from here on out lololol whoops Oh! A great song to listen to while reading this is VIXX's "Into the Void" song on the "Shangri-La" album. Seriously, that song is all I've been listening to while writing this xD Also can we just talk about how I said I would probably post this chapter tomorrow or something and instead I post it no more than a few hours later from the last update lol why am i like this
> 
> Anyways, hope you're all having a wonderful day/night and feel free to leave a comment! Thanks so much for reading and I hope you come back for the next chapter as well.~ <3


	4. optimism

Hissing at the pain, Hongbin tries to keep quiet as Sanghyuk makes work of the wounds on his back, carefully dabbing disinfectant over the still raw skin. “So, what exactly has been happening since I’ve been gone?”

Sanghyuk continues cleaning his hyungs wounds. He tries to not make it hurt worse than it has to, though he does have to make sure everything is clean so it’s not like he can make it virtually painless either. “Well, the night you were all taken I was chased back to the apartment only to find you all missing.”

“That must have been scary.” Hongbin murmurs.

“It was.” The younger laughs softly. “I mean, Imagine being chased by someone wearing all black to the apartment and they only stop once the glass doors in the lobby close, locking them out. Then you find this creepy note in the elevator saying that these bad guys are closer than you think. And then you walk into the empty apartment with no lights on only to try calling Hakyeon and having someone that  _ isn’t _ Hakyeon answering and telling you that your five bandmates have been taken and will only be returned once you cough up ten-million won.”

“Jesus,” Hongbin hisses as Sanghyuk disinfects another wound on his shoulder blade, “that’s terrifying.”

Sanghyuk nods despite the fact his hyung can’t see it. “Yeah, it was and still is. The photos they left me only made everything that much worse.”

Hongbin turns his head to the side in a lame attempt at glancing to the maknae from over his shoulder. “Photos?” He repeats.

“You don’t want to see them.” Sanghyuk mutters. “I broke down at the dining table after looking at them.”

“Show me, I don’t want to stay in the dark about this stuff.” The older says, his voice more somber now. “You still have them don’t you?”

With a sigh, Sanghyuk reluctantly moves from the bed and makes his way over to where he left his bag on the floor near the door to the room. The two of them are currently camping out in his old bedroom, one of the only inner rooms within the entire household with absolutely no windows meaning they can have a light on without anyone outside knowing they’re even there. He fishes around in his backpack for the first manila packet, not having enough courage to look inside the second manila packet he was given just tonight by those men.

Standing up and heading back to his spot behind Hongbin on the twin sized bed, Sanghyuk reaches around the older and hands him the manila packet. “Don’t say I didn’t tell you not to look at those photos hyung…”

The two of them go quiet as Hongbin slowly takes out the contents of the packet, the map of the five meeting locations being the first thing to fall out. Sanghyuk keeps his eyes trained on his hyungs broad shoulders and doesn’t let himself get distracted from his current task of cleaning all of Hongbin’s wounds. He doesn't want to revisit those pictures unless he absolutely has to.

“Wow, they really placed these locations as far apart from each other as they could…” Hongbin mumbles as he looks closer at the map of Seoul. “I mean, the next one we’re probably going to go to is on the other side of the city.”

“You’re not coming with me hyung,” Sanghyuk says without hesitation, “I’m doing this by myself.”

Hongbin actually turns around some at this, clearly in pain from the bruises littering his ribcage but bearing through it anyways to really  _ look _ at the maknae. “What the hell do you mean I’m not going with you? I’m not just going to let you go alone.”

“I just got you back Hongbin, I’m not risking losing you again. Now turn around so I can continue cleaning all of your cuts. I’m not even halfway finished and we’re both dead tired and could use some well needed rest.” Sanghyuk says, gently pressing on the olders shoulder so he’ll turn around while being mindful to not add too much pressure as to not further hurt him.

Reluctantly, Hongbin follows the maknae’s order and turns back around. “You’re just lucky I’m injured or I would be fighting you on this right now.”

“Yeah yeah, I would expect nothing less from you hyung. Just, trust me on this and please don’t leave the house while I’m out.” Sanghyuk mutters as he once again begins focusing on disinfecting the wounds littering Hongbin’s back. “There’s this person out there tracking me down right now and I’m not sure what they’re going to do once they find out our exact location. Don’t even risk lifting the blinds and only turn on lights in rooms like this where there are no windows. We need to pretend as if we aren’t here, understand hyung?”

Hongbin is quiet for a moment before he’s chuckling softly to himself, albeit it sounds more sad than amused. “Look at our Sanghyukie, all grown up and taking care of me like I’m the maknae.”

Sanghyuk sighs. “Hyung, I’m being serious. I need to keep you safe.”

“Shouldn’t I be the one saying that?”

“Hongbin.”

“I got it Hyuk, don’t alert the person tracking you to our hideout. Don’t worry, I’ll be careful.” Hongbin says with a slight nod of his head. “Is that why I haven’t seen your phone anywhere?” He then asks. 

Sanghyuk scoffs. “Yeah, they were tracking me through the chip in my phone and I’m not sure which one is the tracking chip so I just threw my entire phone into this old house a good eleven streets away after factory resetting it.”

Hongbin hums. “Smart. You’ve been doing just fine without us.”

“I haven't been doing fine- it’s been hell without you all.” Sanghyuk responds.

“Still, if I was in your position, I’m not sure I would have been able to do all this. It’s like you’re the star of your own action drama, having to save your friends before they’re sold into human trafficking or some sort of sex trade.” Hongbin muses, voice far too light for the severity of their conversation.

Sanghyuk’s hands still for a fraction of a second before he resumes cleaning the older’s cuts. “Is that what they said would happen to you all if I didn’t bring them their money..?”

Hongbin shrugs. “Yeah. That’s the whole point behind them taking us I think. If you don’t bring them their money, then they can just sell us to whoever and probably make even more.”

“Then why the hell are they even bothering having me bring them ten-million won when they had the opportunity to kidnap an entire popular boy band?”

“Beats me, I’m just glad this is the way they’re doing it because at least that means you can get all of us once they have their ten-million won.”

The younger laughs sadly at that. “Heh, funny story. I don’t have ten-million won hyung.”

“You’re kidding me.” Hongbin says sadly. “How the hell are we going to get everyone back then?”

“I’m still trying to figure that out. I might be able to ask Sungjae for some money or something after this second payment goes through, but I don’t want to drag him into this either so I’m still trying to figure out how to go about things without causing more problems.” Sanghyuk murmurs. “No matter what though, I will be getting everyone back one way or another with or without the money.”

“Honestly Sanghyuk, when did you grow up?” Hongbin asks at nothing above a whisper after a few minutes in silence pass them by. “It feels like just yesterday the two of us were running after the managers van when we left you at that gas station.” He says with a small laugh.

Sanghyuk can’t help but smile at that iconic moment from their early debut days. “Hyung that was  _ years _ ago.”

“I know and I can’t for the life of me figure out when you went from being our baby maknae to being a mature young man who’s capable of saving us.” The older says softly. “Seriously, you’ve grown up into an amazing person Sanghyuk and you’re so smart. So smart and brave and-”

“Okay, I get it hyung, I’ve grown up. Now stop talking so much and just try to relax. You’re more tired than me and you should have been passed out a while ago.” Sanghyuk cuts the older off, very nearly done disinfecting the wounds on his back now.

Hongbin stays quiet just as he was told to, slowly shuffling through the photos Sanghyuk wishes he never had to see. The older man doesn’t say a word as he takes in the images. He looks at Taekwoon’s photo for a good five minutes before moving on to Hakyeon’s and repeating this until he's looked at each of the five photos. Hongbin takes in every last detail, staring the longest at his own photo in particular.

Clearing his throat, Hongbin speaks up. “What should we do with these..?” He asks, voice emotionless as he does so.

“We keep them as evidence. Anything those monsters give me can be used against them when I go to the police.” Sanghyuk answers. “I’m not going to let these bastards get away with torturing you all like this. There’s no way in hell I’m just going to walk away from this after they’ve hurt the people I love most, I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if I did that.”

Hongbin stares down at the photos for a few moments longer before shoving everything back into the manila packet, closing it and tossing it down beside them on the twin sized bed. “How are you going to fight back against these guys Hyuk? It’s just you against them really because as bad of a state as I’m in now, our hyungs are even worse. There’s no way we can help you take them down before they drop off the grid entirely…”

“Leave that to me hyung. I’ll figure something out so you just focus on getting better yourself alright?” The younger says, finally finished patching up the wounds on Hongbin’s back. “Your health comes first and same for our other hyungs once I get them back. All the dirty work I can handle if it means you guys can recover from this ordeal.”

“You’re going to need to recover too after this is all over.” Hongbin murmurs.

“I’m not going to worry about that until everyone is safe. Besides, I’m not the one being tortured so clearly I won’t need to recover nearly as much as all of you.” Sanghyuk says before moving to get up from his bed. “Okay, I’m done with your back. Now lie down so I can get to work on your chest. And don’t worry about falling asleep on me, you need your rest.”

Hongbin purses his lips together as he forces himself to listen to the maknae’s words and maneuvers himself under the blanket, pulling the covers up to his waist while leaving his chest exposed. “Hyuk, just because you’re not the one being physically tortured doesn’t mean this isn’t going to fuck with your head. You do understand that, don’t you?”

The younger doesn’t respond right away as he sits back down on the edge of his bed, moving some of the first aid supplies around to make it easier to grab things as he needs them. “I know hyung, but you guys are more important to me than my own health. As long as I can save all of you and get these monsters back for hurting us, then I can recover from anything they throw at me.” He reassures.

“If you say so Hyuk…” Hongbin murmurs, his eyes fluttering closed as the maknae begins the long and tedious task of disinfecting all the wounds littering his chest.

Hours pass by of Sanghyuk just bandaging his hyung. Hongbin fell asleep at some point during the first two hours, leaving him alone with his thoughts once more.

If Sanghyuk is being true to himself, then, he’d have to agree with Hongbin in saying he’s going to be truly messed up after all of this is said and done. How could he be normal after this ordeal? This will probably be traumatizing for him just as it will be for his hyungs and for whole other reasons… 

But all of that can wait. There’s no time for him to worry about his mental health when his hyungs are in danger. They’re his first and only priority right now. As long as they’re safe, then everything will go back to as it should be with time. 

Nearing four in the morning now, Sanghyuk finally finishes bandaging Hongbin’s chest. His hyung is still fast asleep when he drags the blanket up to cover his torso. Sanghyuk can’t help but smile at the sight of his hyung sleeping so peacefully. It’s probably the first decent nights rest he’s had since all of this first began a week ago now. 

Wow, one whole week has passed already…

Sanghyuk sighs to himself, moving to sit down on the floor beside his bag with his back pressed flush against the wall. He glances to Hongbin, watching him sleep for a few moments longer and really accepting that he’s here with him, right here and now and no longer in clutches of those monsters. Though that only makes Sanghyuk’s stomach drop when he remembers his other hyungs, the ones who are still being held captive. 

Taking out the other manila packet he received earlier that he’s kept hidden from Hongbin, Sanghyuk spares his hyung one last fleeting glance before opening the packet. Inside, just like the first packet, there's a map of Seoul, the same five locations marked as they are on the other map. Though this one says the time of when to meet and at which specific location. 

After he places the map down beside him on the floor, Sanghyuk makes a grab for the four photos he was dreading having to look at. The ones of his hyungs.

These photos show them in worse conditions than what they were in prior. Hell, they look worse than Hongbin in all honesty and that man wasn’t exactly in the best of conditions when he found him earlier tonight either… 

Sanghyuk’s attention focuses on Hakyeon’s picture first, his condition probably being the most severe of them all. His bottom lip is busted, blood trailing down the corner of his mouth and down his chin. Cuts and scratches littering his face some while larger, darker and more developed bruises litter his torso. Thankfully it doesn’t look as though they’ve cut into him with anything which was probably one of the biggest fears Sanghyuk has developed over these last few nights.

Jaehwan’s photo isn’t much better than Hakyeon’s. He’s bloodied and bruised and has a few more cuts than their leader but overall is in roughly the same state, the same being said for both Taekwoon and Wonshik as well. Each of them just look so battered and Sanghyuk can’t understand why they’re being treated so poorly.

Sure, he gets it to an extent because they’re the hostages and Sanghyuk can only guess they're being used as a fear tactic of sorts. An incentive for Sanghyuk to bring them the full amount of money they've asked for. But why must they keep escalating the abuse they put his hyungs through? He’s bringing them the money they want, isn’t that enough?

Sanghyuk places the photos back into the packet before shoving said packet deep under all of the supplies he has stuffed into his backpack. He doesn’t waste any time in moving from up off the floor and back to sitting on his old bed where Hongbin is still sleeping so peacefully. Reaching over some, Sanghyuk pulls back the covers and slips his way underneath, turning off the bedside lamp as he does so.

Hongbin’s soft snores are all that fill the dark room as Sanghyuk lies down next to his hyung. There’s barely enough room for the two of them to be sleeping here together, but Sanghyuk can’t bring himself to go and sleep in a different room or on the floor. He wants to be near Hongbin and won’t take anything less than sleeping right here beside him.

Maybe it’s because he missed him while he was gone or he’s still scared of someone stealing his hyung again, Sanghyuk can’t tell you which is the more realistic reason between the two. Either way, he lies there beside his hyung, finding the older’s hand under the blanket and intertwining their fingers as he slowly drifts off to sleep. For the first time since this all began, Sanghyuk feels relatively at peace as he holds Hongbin’s hand, keeping him grounded and preventing his mind from racing to all of the nightmares it’s been entertaining for countless nights now.

With Hongbin here, things are looking up. Sanghyuk smiles some to himself moments before he truly falls asleep. At least with one of his hyungs back, he isn’t doing this truly alone anymore… 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> kljfdjdfklaklfdkjlakj i'm not emotional you are :')))
> 
> This chapter actually made me kind of happy lol I guess it's because Hyuk now has someone to talk to and no longer has to worry as much about aka the oh so lovingly magical Bean.~ Funny story, I actually started up another Sanghyuk x VIXX fanfic titled "late night ice cream (with a side of romance?)" that's a complete 180 to this fic xD it's all cute and fluffy and just yeah, the exact opposite of this angst filled depressing fanfic ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯ so if you're interested in a happier, light-hearted and funny Hyuk-centric fic then I definitely recommend checking out my other fanfic when you need something fluffy in your life to cheer you up.~
> 
> Thanks so much for reading this everyone! ily <3


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